1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a broadcast information receiving and displaying apparatus and the method. The invention may be used to an apparatus and the method which can display a broadcast image corresponding to the received broadcast signal transferred from a broadcast station.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, a broadcast station gives a broadcast service by using an analog type broadcast signal transferred on a grand wave, and the broadcast station transfers own broadcast program within a predetermined frequency band that is assigned to the broadcast station itself.
A broadcast receiver (is called as IRD: Integrated Receiver Decoder) that is located in a viewer's home selects a desired broadcast program on a desired channel from a plurality of programs on a plurality of channels corresponding to the channel selecting operation, and then the receiver decodes the selected broadcast program on the selected channel to display on a monitor.
By the way, in the broadcast system as explained above it is proposed to regularly transfer data from the predetermined broadcast station into the receiver in the viewer's home for a purpose of informing about the broadcast programs provided from the broadcast station, and the data indicates contents of the broadcast programs and is called as electric program guide information (EPG).
This EPG data includes a title of a broadcast program, a channel number for the broadcast program, a broadcast time of the broadcast program and explanation or contents of the broadcast program and so on.
The viewer (listener) is able to decide favorite one of broadcast programs to watch based on the electronic broadcast program guide information displayed on the display screen of the monitor.
In this case, the IRD receiver regularly receives this EPG data transmitted from the predetermined broadcast station, and stores thus received EPG data in a memory of the IRD receiver. Thus memorized EPG data is read out from the memory by the operation of the viewer (listener) and is displayed on the display screen of the monitor.
The viewer (listener) checks or searches the displayed EPG data on the display screen and decides one or more of the broadcast program to watch.
By the way, as the EPG data contains a plenty of broadcast program information of various broadcast stations, the display screen of the monitor for the IRD receiver can not display all of the EPG data at a time because of the limited size of the display screen.
Accordingly, the viewer (listener) has to scroll or change the displayed image of the EPG data in order to find out favorite broadcast program among various broadcast programs. This scrolling operation or changing operation is very complex and tiresome to the viewer (listener).
In order to avoid such complex operation upon finding the favorite broadcast program, a keyword search processing is proposed to use in finding out favorite broadcast program among various broadcast programs using the EPG data. Namely, one or more of search keys for the viewer (listener) is previously registered in the IRD receiver and thus registered search key is used to search favorite information among the EPG data.
Thus searched broadcast program data is displayed on the display screen of the monitor. In this case, the predetermined broadcast station transmits pre-selected words suitable for keywords decided by the broadcast station within the EPG data, and when the IRD receiver receives these pre-selected words, the IRD receiver registers in a memory these words as keywords. Alternatively, the IRD receiver picks up words among the EPG data based on a predetermined general rule for keywords, and registers thus picked up words as keywords.
In the above mentioned two cases for registration of keywords, it is impossible to register keywords particularly related to the viewer (listener)'s preference, so that the viewer (listener) can not search or find his or her favorite broadcast program among various broadcast programs.
Accordingly, if the viewer (listener) wants to find out broadcast program based on personality and to generate as keywords at the IRD receiver, the broadcast station has to prepare these keywords for personality and to generate in addition to explanation data for the broadcast program in advance and has to transmit these keywords.
In order to register keywords for the viewer (listener), it is possible to use key board to enter and register keywords in the memory of the IRD receiver, but this is very complex and tiresome to prepare a keyboard and to enter the viewer (listener)'s favorite keywords through the keyboard by the viewer (listener).